GE Vernova Will Supply Wind Turbines for Three Australia Projects
GE Vernova has entered into a wind turbine supply deal with an Australian company, a move that includes construction of onshore projects in New South Wales. GE Vernova on Jan. 29 confirmed it has signed a strategic framework agreement with Squadron Energy for about 1.5 GW of new onshore wind generation, what the companies on Monday called a $2.75 billion green strategic alliance.
GE Vernova will supply 6-MW wind turbines for Squadron Energy’s 414-MW Uungula Wind Farm, which broke ground in early January. GE Vernova also will supply turbines for Squadron’s next two projects, the 700-MW Spicers Creek and 400-MW Jeremiah wind farms in New South Wales, and also serve as the engineering, procurement, and construction lead through CCP, its consortium partners.
Squadron Energy is a wholly owned portfolio company of Tattarang, an Australian private investment group. Squadron said the three projects in New South Wales each will feature GE Vernova’s 6.0-164 turbine, enabling standardization of grid and project execution elements across each installation. The Uungula farm will include 69 of the 6.0-164 turbines, and GE also has a five-year full-service agreement with the project.
‘Strong Partnership’
“This deal is the culmination of a strong partnership between the GE and Squadron teams built over several years across multiple projects,” said Vic Abate, CEO of GE Vernova’s Wind business. “We are delighted to continue working together across a portfolio of projects in New South Wales, to bring reliable and affordable wind energy to the region.”
The companies on Monday said the three wind farm projects are expected to create about 1,000 construction and maintenance jobs.
GE Vernova said more than 1,200 of its 6.0-164 turbine models are in operation worldwide. The turbine is designed to operate in challenging environments, in areas such as Australia, where GE Vernova has 3 GW of wind turbines either operating or under construction.
“Across global markets, securing supply chains to mitigate risk and ensure a swift rollout of renewable energy projects has been identified as one of the greatest challenges facing the sector and the shift to more renewable energy,” said Abate. “This alliance with Squadron Energy is another example of GE Vernova’s ability to deliver on our workhorse strategy—producing fewer variants in large quantities at scale to drive quality and reliability across the fleet for our customers.”
Australia’s Energy Transition
Dr. Andrew Forrest, the chairman of Tattarang, said, “This partnership with GE Vernova will accelerate Australia’s transition to green energy. Squadron Energy is committed to delivering a 14 GW renewable energy development pipeline,” which Forrest said is “one-third of the Australian government’s 82% 2030 renewable energy target. The strong policies in place in the U.S. and Australia to incentivize industry investment in large-scale green energy will help to bring emissions down, not just nationally but across the globe. The transition to green energy is well and truly underway. It’s urgent for our planet but with the correct policies and partnerships it’s also great for our economy and local workforce.”
Chris Bowen, the Australian minister for Climate Change and Energy, said government officials recognize the need for outside investment to further the country’s renewable energy strategy.
“The Australian government welcomes the partnership between GE and Squadron Energy with its ambitious 14-GW renewable and storage development pipeline,” said Bowen. “These projects are further proof renewable energy investors are getting on with the job, capitalizing on Australia’s huge renewable potential, and helping transform our energy grid for the 21st century. Firmed renewable energy and storage is not only the cheapest form of energy but provides crucial reliability as increasingly old and unreliable coal fired power stations inevitably exit the system.”
—Darrell Proctor is a senior associate editor for POWER (@POWERmagazine).